Olympic roundup: Shaun White returns to games in halfpipe

MAMMOTH LAKES -- Shaun White performed at his best when it mattered in the final Olympic halfpipe selection event at the Sprint U.S. Grand Prix in Mammoth on Sunday.

Northstar's White had a smooth yet explosive first run to seal his second victory in a row here and earn a trip to the Sochi Games, where he will try to win his signature event three consecutive times.

White, who said he will skip next weekend's Winter X Games to rest up for Sochi, edged Truckee's Danny Davis, who qualified for the Olympics after barely missing out in 2010.

"I don't know points, I don't know any of that stuff, but I know I'm riding well again," he said after scoring a victory and second place in three selection events at Mammoth.

Davis did it on his final run after falling on the first go-round. Rallying like he did doesn't surprise his mom, Laura Davis.

"That's the way he rolls," she said.

Kaitlyn Farrington posted a 91.4 to win the women's competition, ending Kelly Clark's four-event winning streak. Clark, of Mammoth Lakes, finished second but had previously earned a spot on her fourth Olympic team.

Another late comer was South Lake Tahoe's Hannah Teter, who earned her third consecutive bronze to make her third Olympic team.

But two other two-time Olympians failed to advance in what is called the world's toughest halfpipe competition.

Gretchen Bleiler of Aspen, Colo., finished fifth in the overall standings and tried to wear a brave face.

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"It's so tough," the 2006 Olympic silver medalist said. "I was so close."

Steve Holcomb barely missed sweeping the bobsled World Cup races in Igls, Austria, taking second Sunday after winning the two-man the previous day.

But it was Monterey's Nick Cunningham who highlighted the competition for the Americans, finishing fourth to all but seal a berth at the Sochi Games.

Cunningham's crew had two great starts that propelled the struggling driver to his best World Cup finish this season in the four-man sled a week after he crashed when in medal contention. He missed a medal Sunday by .07 seconds. The 2010 Olympian's previous best was 12th on Jan. 4.

"My guys put me in contention for a medal last week, and I let them down," Cunningham told USA Bobsled. "They came back this week with that same drive, and it's just unreal. They've elevated the U.S. program."

Lauryn Williams and Lolo Jones were selected for the U.S. bobsled team that will compete in Sochi.

They are now positioned to join a group of eight other Americans who have competed in both the Summer and Winter Games. Williams is a three-time summer Olympian who helped the U.S. win a gold medal in the 400-meter relay at the London Games. Jones is a two-time veteran of the summer games in the 100-meter hurdles.

Bode Miller took 26th in the Wengen, Switzerland, slalom for his first World Cup points in the discipline since 2011.

Wire services contributed to this report. Contact Elliott Almond at 408-920-5865. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/elliottalmond.